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In co-operation with the German Federal Cultural Foundation (Kulturstiftung des Bundes) the Berlin International Film Festival has set up the World Cinema Fund to support filmmakers from transition countries. Until 2007, the geographical focus has been on Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. In February 2007, the WCF announced an expansion of the focus regions: from summer 2007, film projects from South East Asia and the Caucasus will also be eligible for support from the WCF.

The aim of the World Cinema Fund is to help the realisation of films which otherwise could not be produced, i.e. feature films and creative feature-length documentaries with a strong cultural identity. Another important goal is to strengthen the profile of these films in German cinemas. The World Cinema Fund has an annual budget of about 500,000 Euros at its disposal and provides support in the fields of production and distribution.

One out of many successful WCF funded projects is Hany Abu-Assad's Paradise Now. The gripping drama ran in the Competition of the Berlinale 2005, won the Blue Angel prize for best European film endowed by Agicoa, and was then shown in more than 50 countries. In January 2006 the film won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film.

Eligible for funding are production companies with directors from the above mentioned regions as well as German production companies working with a director from these regions. The maximum amount which can be granted to a film for production is 100,000 Euros. In order to receive such funds, a German partner is required. However, the film does not necessarily have to be a co-production.

German distributors can apply for distribution support. The maximum amount that can be granted to a film for distribution is 15,000 Euros.

Production support:

Up to 100,000 Euros per project.
The budgets of the projects should range between 200,000 - 1,000,000 Euros.
The funds should be spent in the countries in which the film is to be produced.

Distribution support:

Up to 15,000 Euros per project.

The funds have to be spent on distributing the film in Germany.

The following documents are necessary for the application:
3-page synopsis, film script (English or French), director's CV and previous films on VHS or DVD, scriptwriter's CV, production company's history, proof of legal status, detailed budget in Euros, plan in Euros of how the production is to be financed and copies of the co-production contracts (the latter only if relevant).

Contact

Project Management

Sonja Heinen
heinen@berlinale.de

Vincenzo Bugno
bugno@berlinale.de

Office Management

Christine Paul
paul@berlinale.de

phone +49 30 25 920 516
fax +49 30 25 920 529

The World Cinema Fund is initiated by the Kulturstiftung des Bundes , German Federal Cultural Foundation, and supported by Goethe Institute.

Download WCF-Booklet 2007 (PDF) (2324 KB)

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